“Boat sails well, becoming a bit of a monster in winds under 5 knots, and wave action really is not something she likes due to being so light. Otherwise had a fast trip up from Cape Verde--17 days to the Azores (sailed in the slipstream of a failed hurricane, Nadine), and got a perfect lift almost halfway by Day 5. Then the lack of engine made itself felt [in the Azorean High], but once out had three days of strong northerlys before the long prayed for westerly clicked in.
Same went for the Azores to Cape Saint Vincent stretch. Four and a half days for 700 miles, only to get stuck 80 miles out with no wind, waiting for the inevitable bad weather--in winter not uncommon--to roll you. Which it did four days later and cracked the already compromised mast, so that I really have to nurse it (until I find a new tree). I am now in Lagos, in the Algarve, on mainland Portugal, hoping to lay the boat up for a month while I go and spend Christmas with my family in Switzerland.
Boat performs well over all. I have been singlehanding this 70-footer since the Cape Verde islands. That's how easy she is to handle. I also don't steer any more--my $3 bungee cord and tweaking of the sail does it all. So that frees one up to doing absolutely nothing. It was fun to work and paint in the Azorean high. But once up in the colder parts all that one could do was lay up in the bunk and read, drink hot tea, and wait for another day and just keep warm.”
